March 24, 2022 • 42 mins
A new baseball season is finally getting underway—bringing with it our enduring optimism. Baseball has helped see us through wars, depressions, and pandemics. It’s seen Jackie Robinson break down the color barrier 75 years ago this April, and players like Juan Marichal and Roberto Clemente open the doors of possibility to generations of young people across Latin America. It is more than a game; it’s a part of who we are.
There’s no better person to help celebrate the upcoming season than David Ortiz, a once in a generation star who embodies the best of baseball both on and off the field. David is a 10-time All-Star, three-time World Series champion with the Boston Red Sox, seven-time Silver Slugger, soon-to-be baseball Hall of Famer, and a hero to fans young and old, from New England to the Dominican Republic where he grew up.
In this episode, David shares stories about how his parents’ love and guidance helped give him the dedication and discipline to succeed; some of the most memorable moments of his career, including breaking “The Curse of the Bambino” in 2004 and rallying the local community and the country after the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing; and his commitment to giving back and making a difference in kids’ lives through the David Ortiz Children’s Fund.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
For as long as I can remember, the start of
spring has been heralded by baseball players reporting to training
camp with a new season getting underway. Bringing with it
are enduring optimism for our favorite teams and the summer
to come. Baseball has sent us through wars, depressions, and pandemics.
(00:27):
It's seen Jackie Robinson break the color barrier seventy five
years ago. This eightful and players like je Marshall and
Roberto Clemente opened doors of possibilities to new generations of
players from across Latin America. Over All these decades, baseball
has always been more than a game. It's become part
(00:48):
of who we are. So why am I telling you this?
Because after a long, dark off season and a lockout
that put the schedule in jeopardy, baseball is back and
there's no better person to help us celebrate than our
guests today, A once in a generation player who embodies
the best of baseball both on and off the field.
(01:10):
He's a ten time All Star, three time World Series champions,
seven time Silver Slugger, soon to be Baseball Hall of Famer,
and a hero to fans young and old from New
England to the Dominican Republic David Ortiz. During his fourteen
years with the Boston Red Sox, David helped lead the
team to three championships, including ending the infamous eighty six
(01:33):
year curse the so called Curse of the Bambino in
two thousand four. He also set and still holds the
team record for most home runs in a single season
with fifty four, and is widely considered one of the
greatest designated hitters in the history of the game. He's
also always been focused on giving back off the field,
(01:54):
particularly through the David Ortiz Children's Fund, which provides critical
cardiac services the children in need. David, thanks for being
here today, Mr President. How are you. I'm good. It's
nice to hear your voice. It's good seeing you. Obviously
you in a minute. Um. I think everyone who will
be listening to this podcast knows who you are and
(02:15):
knows probably that you came from the Dominican Republic, But
that doesn't explain how you fell in love with baseball
and how you've finally got a chance to play in
the major So tell us how old were you when
you started playing, How were you when you knew you
fell in love with the game, and how old were
you when you realized you had a chance to make
(02:36):
the Major's Well, first of all, I want to say
hi to all your audience. It's an honor. So we
having this podcast you Mr President and uh In my case,
I would like people to understand importance of discipline, dedication
and one of the most important things. I always take
(02:56):
a lot of pride on on the things that I do,
especially when my family list in ball. And and that's
where my story begins. You know, I was a kid
coming from uh String neighborhood back in the Dominican Republic.
But I have a couple of parents who are They
wasn't professionists, but they one thing to get to be
(03:21):
done the right way. My mom emphasized a lot of education.
My dad as well. And my dad was very good
baseball player. And but back then it came to be
a professional ball player baseball player, it was harder than
what it is nowadays. So my dad is just the
(03:44):
kind of guy that he had a lot of faith
on God and he always told me the story that
once he had a quick baseball he basically went to
church and prayed to God to have that his first
child was a boy, and and that be came to
be a baseball player. What I learned from it is
(04:06):
that dream come true. You know, God have faith and
got it, and you gotta change your dreams. And at
some point if you have dedication and discipline, he can
come through, you know. And my dad skins. I was
a kid, I remember my favor. My very first toy
was a baseball back and ball in the glove. But
(04:28):
me being a lefty back then in the Dominican it
was hard to found a left under blow. So my
dad bought me a right handed glove. I used to
wear it in the hands when I used to wear
and sometimes I used to wear in the left in
the hand castaball take the glove off and throw the baseball.
(04:51):
And when I was like eight or nine, he got
me into this one literal league team because he used
to see down when he comes back from work. He
used to see and to watch me playing baseball on
the street in front of the house. And my dad,
for some reason he thought I had something especial going on,
and since that he started emphasizing on me following up
(05:14):
with baseball because he said that when I was like
nine ten years old, the kids that were a ready
fourteen and fifteen, used to pick me on their team
to play with him. They used to fight to help
me playing in dirt team because he said that my
hands in that coordination at the age of nine ten,
(05:35):
it was very special. So my dad he just he
just fall in love where he pushed me, pushed me.
I was. I was the type of guy that at
some point I truly fall in love with basketball just
watching Michael Jordan's and all those guys doing that. That
(05:56):
in the NBA was pretty big. Back in the Dominican Republic,
I used to love being the basketball court playing basketball.
You know. I used to go to the baseball field
and then if I see a basketball cortin as, I
used to stop at the basketball court, start playing basketball
and forget about baseball. That's how crazy it was about baseball,
about about basketball at the time. But my dad keep
(06:19):
from pushing me, keep from pushing me. He used to
go sometimes to the baseball court and be like, hey, no, no, no,
that's not what you're gonna be. You're gonna be a
baseball player. Here, let's go to the baseball field. And
he had got to the point where one day, I
don't know where I remember I was on my way
(06:39):
to play basketball, and then they had a baseball game
going on and they were missing a couple of guys,
so they know that I used to practice base but
and I was into it, and the guy pulled me
into the game and then I hit two homes. When
that happened, I was like, wow, I think I can
do this. I can't do this. So I started like
(07:05):
playing more baseball, and I started following in love more
with the game. Baseball was my thing. We were in
Chicago and I was in the bar. We are Ellis
Bert after the game and the NBA was there, so
J having security coming to get uh Ellis Burt and
(07:26):
myself to come and join him, and uh that was
the time whatever minute, And I told him straight up, hey, look,
you know what, because of you, I almost not get
to be playing baseball right now. He was like what,
And then I started doing the breakdown for him and
we were laughing and and it was fun. And but
(07:48):
like I said, you know, Uh, I was lucky enough
to have parents uh focus on education and sport at
the same time without ruined the attention for anyone of
or the two things. Educational sport. They want to make
(08:09):
sure that I educated myself in that same time. Play
is for and thanks to your parents. And then we
all owe him a lot because your dad cat you
in baseball and you broke the curse of the m
Vino in two thousand four. That's exactly how he went
down and started the Yokers. The You know, this is
(08:32):
very interesting to me because I've spent a lot of
time in the Dominican Republic over the last twenty years,
and one of my closest friends and college classmates and
still lives there. We do a lot of work together
and and we've talked a lot about how how rich
the baseball heritage is there. Even the great Satchel Page
(08:52):
played in the Dominican Republic back in this nineteen sixties
and fifties. He'd go down there. So there is a
long history there, and there's a most Americans don't know it,
but there's a kind of a Latin American World Series
every year with Mexico, the American Republic, Venezuela, Puerto Rico,
(09:13):
Cuba and uh. It was several years ago. It was
in Jalisco, and I was invited to go down and
be there when we threw out the first pitch with
the great boxer Canelo, and thank goodness, he threw the
ball and I didn't have to, so his arm was
slightly better than mine. Oh my good did you think
(09:36):
a lot when you played that you were basically walking
in the staffs of one Marshall Sammy Sells, the great
Dominican players before. Were you aware that you were carrying
this heritage forward? Reality is suppression that I, uh, I
was the kid that all I have a mind when
(09:59):
that's first joke into the pro was founding the way
to help my family. We were poor family coming from
the dominic, and my mom and dad I used to
work extremely hard to pay for the school, to pay
for food. We didn't have any extra things because we
(10:19):
can't afford it. And my childhood was really good because
he was full of love in respect, but nothing else.
We don't have any financial statement. It was the type
of living that it was in the day by day
(10:40):
type of things and it was basically, you know, surviving
type of thing. And but my my mom and dad
they hold on tight, they protect uh their kids. They
always try their best to take care of us the
(11:00):
way they can. At the time when I was like sixteen,
seventeen with all the pressure that I was living into it.
I know exactly what I need to be and what
I want to be. I just don't know what it
was gonna take me to get there, but I know
my mind has very clear the things that I need
(11:24):
to do. Two, put my family in a situation because
I was the only way out. I was their only
way out. It was the only way out but me.
So I know that I had that responsibility, and I started,
you know, working on trying to learn what it takes
(11:46):
to be one of those guys that you just mentioned. Well,
I'm very moved by what you said about your mother,
and I know you lost her about twenty years ago.
I think this year in the car accident. Yes, and
you were paying tribute. You're at you every home running. Yes.
I remember when I lost my mom. I was playing
for the Twins and it was after New Year Dead.
(12:08):
My mom used to go to busy her family, you know,
New Year, you know, and that one time it was
like basically saying goodbye, because on the way back home
they asked it happened, and I was pretty close to
my mom. I was, I was, you know, my mom was.
I always give some hard time to my sister saying
(12:29):
that I was my mom favorite child. She just spoiled
man enough, you know what I'm saying, My moments to
love cooking and just sit down and watch me eat.
She used to call me her big boy, you know.
And we had that type of connection. And once that happened,
that that heat home hard, you know, because my career, uh,
(12:54):
he would just beginning, and it was something that no
one is prepared for that, you know. And and I
remember I went to spring training in March. I remember
(13:15):
I used to celebrate my mother's birthday because her birthday
was marched four wards. We were in the middle spring
training and that day that it was her birthday. Uh.
I remember getting to the field, I got to the
parking lot and I was just bawling, crying, and I
(13:37):
just sitting down by myself in the parking lot, and uh,
the whole team came out and picked me up. And
I remember my boy, Buddy Hunter, he was he was
my teammate at the time. He was the first one
who coming and grabbed me. And you know, everybody was
super cool. And I was in the line of that
(14:01):
day and I remember I hit two homers on that game,
and the first thing that came to my mind after
I hit the first summer was doing that that celebration
when I got to the plate. And since that day,
it was like the best feeling I have had after
I hit the home run. I bet you still miss
your mother? Oh yeah, every day? My mother dad twenty
(14:26):
nine years ago, last January six, and uh, I still
think about her, you know all the time. That's a
different love, Mr President, That's a different love. You know,
you got your wife, you got your kids, you got
your family member, you got everybody, you got friends. But
the love coming from mom is is different. That's why
(14:48):
I always tell my kids, you love for your mom
is the love for your mom, you know, it's it's
it's something that is extremely different. That connection is different.
I'm a guy that I'm buy so many lovely people,
so many people, like my family is based on that
sprained love everywhere, but that one type of love is different.
(15:12):
So you became famous in Boston for many things, but
no one will ever forget the speech you gave in
Fenway Park after the Boston Marathon bombing, and uh, you
captured the feelings of everybody in Boston, but also one
(15:34):
of the hearts of everybody in America from how did
that happen? How did you come to be speaking and
saying that? Do you did you? Did you know what
you were gonna say when you started talking? No idea,
no idea. But the one thing that I always tell
everyone is that first of all, this country it means
(15:58):
everything to me. You know, um, this is going to
give me the opportunity to me and my family to
have a future. And I always keep from telling people,
you know, like it's going through to me, it's just
like the Dominican Republic. Uh, It's a country that means
(16:18):
everything to me. The thing was traveling. I was a
Boston rehabit and when I saw all that things happening,
I thought I was watching a movie because I couldn't believe.
Like the marathon, like who is not related to the marathon?
Like the marathon is what we raise money to fight disease,
(16:41):
you know, it's what we where everybody get together for
the cause. That means a lot to everyone. And when
I saw that going down and I was, I was,
I got stuck. I don't I don't even know what
to think. And I started getting frustrated because I always
(17:02):
the rest Socks do a great job we with all
of us as a player, making sure that we are
involved in the community service. You know what I'm saying.
We go to hospital, we go to school, we go
to jobs, we we we we like the rest Socks.
I'm very proud about what I learned playing for the
(17:25):
rest Socks when they come down to community service, because
they made sure that we get involved with the community.
So one that was going on, I remember seeing a
black hawk flying by my house, and you know that
you don't see a black hawk every day. Who know
(17:47):
that when you see a black hawk there's something going down,
And it was when all the chasing was going off.
Three days later, the team comes back in town. But
three days you know, just seeing all the people that
lost family members, that love body parts, all these beautiful
(18:11):
people that was trying to help, that was trying to
do things, it was very devastating. I mean I I was.
I was very very upset. And the one thing that
he homed for me especially it was just one kid
(18:31):
that got killed, you know, that was something that it
was very devastating to me. So when the thing came
back in town, we are again and that was going
to be my first gig of the season, and we
had the ceremony going on going on my family. I
(18:53):
had no clue that they were gonna pick me to
go out there and say something to the fans. I
had no idea that happened, Like I want the ceremony
start going five minutes before. They were like, hey, we
want you to go out there, and I was in
the dog. We want you to go out there and
say something to the fans. And all I say out
(19:14):
there was me being a citizen. I never thought about
me being Dave Rutize, me being the face of the franchise,
me being who I was. All I thought about was
all the stuff that we went through through all those
days as an American citizen, and and that was what
(19:38):
I left over an amount when I took over the microphone.
And all I want to make sure when I say
what I say is that I want people to know
that even going through all that this is the greatest
country to live. Because I know where I come from,
and I know the lack of opportunity that you can
have in the third world country. What is something that
(20:01):
here in this country, if you come in and work hard,
they give the opportunity to have that American dream that
we all talk about, and that was it. That was me.
You did a great thing for America that day. More
after this, when was your first season in the major
(20:28):
leagues and how old were you it was? I got
cold up my first game, very first game, was a
really feel something that I think it was the best
experience of all time because you're talking about one of
day uh legendary fields. Growing up as a kid, my
(20:48):
favorite player was Carby Pocket, and carry Pocket at the
time was working in the front office for the Minnesota Twins.
But when I got cold up, he was there. Uh
he was in the clothhouse, and I think it was
the greatest thing and the reason why he he came
to be my favorite player, it was because when I
was a kid, I had no patience to sit down
(21:11):
to watch the baseball game, and my dad's in the
playoffs between the Braids and the Minnesota Twins. He basically
forced me to see on to watch the game, and
I sit down, and that was when Kirby made that
that incredible cash in center field that we all remember,
and he went out there to hit and then he
(21:34):
hit a bomb. So as a kid that I stayed
with me forever. So when I got traded from Seattle
to Minnesota, the one guy that I wanted me, I
mean badly, was Kirby. And Kirby was so good to me.
He was like a father to me, Like he was
(21:56):
the most fun guy to be year around, you know.
And and Kirby take care of all of us, all
of us, you know, And he was working in the
front office in the spring training. Used to come down
and make sure that, you know, our mindset, of our
preparation and everything was good to go. But at same time,
(22:17):
he was a cloud, which I think made baseball, you know,
even more fun when you have a guy like him,
you know, being him. It was something that that really
really helped us out. And unfortunately we're into losing Kirby
down the road. And when I got to Boston the
(22:40):
number that used to wear I Minnesota, he was already
one of his number that he was hanging up there. Uh,
they asked me one number, I want to wear it?
And then I went from Kurby. Oh well yeah, that's
how he went down. But yeah, my first game was
to really feel I remember amy so as I playing
(23:01):
right field, Mark Grays played first Gray. I used to
be a first base on another time. So Mark Grays
was one of my hey were played to watch. So
Sammy told Mark Grays about it, and I remember Mark
Gray sending me one of his glove autographs to me.
That was everything. I lost it when I didn't see
that glow it was it was, it was beautiful, It
(23:24):
was beautiful, and that was what I got. My first hit,
My first thing in the Big League was a double.
That's great. I remember in nine when I was still president,
I went to Atlanta to celebrate the twenty five anniversary
of Henk Karen breaking Babe Bruce home run record and
(23:44):
a lot of the great All Stars were there, but
the only player that was playing still in doing well
who came with Sammy Celsis And I said, I can't
believe you're here. I really appreciate you making the effort
to come, And he said, uh no, no, no, I
had to be here. What you should want to know
(24:04):
is where the others are. Did they think we'd be
making all this big money if it hadn't been for
Hank Aaron getting baseball and doing what he did, you know,
and I love the way baseball bills on each other,
you know, traditions sometimes now a hundred years old. It's
it's beautiful. And Hank Aaron and I became very close
(24:26):
friends that He said something that night that I'll never forget,
just because it's what I see often in the greatest athletes,
a certain humility, you know. And I said, I said, Hank,
who's the best player you ever played with her against?
And he said, oh, that's not close. He said William Mazes.
He said, he, uh, he had the best arm from
(24:49):
outfield since for Berto Clemente. He could run like a
deer and he could hit like a demon, and he
would have broken Babe Ruth record too, if the Giants
hadn't moved to Candle State Park where the wind blew
oh yeah, from Blackfield right in the home flight. He said,
there were nights even God couldn't at home running Candlestick.
(25:14):
But I thought, you know, here's this guy celebrating his
epic record talking about other people. And I see that
all the time in baseball, a sense of the history,
of the sense of the appreciation for other people. And
I've always respected out about you the way you treat
the game with respect, to treat the players with respect,
you know, you know, what now that you say that
(25:37):
A few things before I forgot when you were talking
about Mr hang Aaron's I have a wonderful spirit with him.
Before I got to hang out even more with him.
I remember we one day without them for War Series
and I went with the family to the Bahamas and
I'm sitting down having dinner with my family and the
table and this yet man stand all right next to
(26:02):
me and told me. I'm not looking at him and listening.
I'm listening to what he's saying. And he said, hey,
and with my grandson, can you sign this baseball for me?
And I was like, of course. And then I got
the baseball and when I was about to sign it,
I look up and when I saw him, I was like,
(26:23):
wait a minute, why don't you sign one for me?
It was the coolest thing that I ever happened to me.
When I saw me saying asking me for an autograph,
I was like, not another, you sign one for me?
How about that? And now we alway used to make
fun at it about it after that, and when it
(26:44):
comes down to prospect the game, the one thing that
I always Mr President and thought about while I play
it was that this game is like when you are
an Olympic running that you have to pass the torch
to someone else. Uh the game, I would say, unfortunately.
(27:11):
It's like that. Why I say unfortunately, because when you
fall in love with this game, you never want to
be out of it, and at some point you have
to because you don't get any younger. You know what
I'm saying. By the one thing that I always enjoyed
was being able to pass the torch do it on
the prowd way. Because I have so many young talented
(27:33):
players now that I don't play, coming to me and
be like, hey man, you know I appreciate it where
you did things and the way you handle the business
with we all of us, you know, coming up guys
that played with me, Guys that even more part of
the opposition that I had to sit down and get
their advice because I believe in the talent. I love
(27:55):
to see the guys that had the great talent and
being able to get them advice, let them know how
things though, because all I want all I work about
when I play, and even now that I don't place,
make sure that the game get better and better and better.
And the only way that happened is with educational perspect
it's stay there forever. We'll be right back. Do you
(28:28):
announce your retirement in before the season and then you
went out and at the most home runs by a
player in his final year? Ever, how did you know
it was time to hang it up? And did you
ever have any second thoughts? Um? Reality is that the
season before that one, you know, my last first gear,
(28:51):
playing my last four years, I will go in through
a lot of pain and my achilles. I first injured
my right one and then all of a sudden, my
my left when the start, you know, start hurting, and
the rest of the did a great job. They had
(29:13):
a whole team working on me. I remember, uh for
the seven p m. Gang, I used to come around
to to theddy, but once this olders treatment start taking places,
I had to come to the field by noon. So
I would left living, you know, the family, earlier than
usual to make sure I get ready and prepared to
(29:35):
play the game. So to me, I always wear the
uniform with a lot of pride and and I know
that the fans always expect me too to come through. Uh.
While I wore the uniform like that, that was the
responsibility that I kind of build up through the time,
(29:55):
and and and I had that connection with the fans,
and and I want to make sure don't miss a
beat while I played so two that going through all
that two that in fifteen, I I remember, and that
was when I find out that I gotta go through story, right.
(30:16):
I remember we were playing I think it was a
Seattle and then we went to Houston something like that.
I can't really remember, but I remember I hit a double.
And when I was a second base, they have a
new picture coming in. And while I was sitting there,
(30:37):
you know how the players come around you to talk
to you, you know, interact with you. Uh, while the
picture is getting ready, the infielder came around and everybody
was like twenty years old. And I were like, wait
a minute, all this guy can be my kids? Is
(31:00):
not fun? Uh? And then I'm hurting. I mean, what's
going on here? I went home that night and I
was thinking about a big time and plus I had
a hossle to get that double. And when I stopped
a second base, I want to make sure that the
next guy hit him. It makes you hit another double
(31:20):
or hit at home run, because I don't think I
was feeling like scoring with the basic. That's how much
I was hurting. So all this stuff started stacking up.
And then I went to play to Houston and exactly
the same thing happened. I hit a double, they got
(31:41):
a new picture coming in. And then I remember our
two ways, who is short but he was like nineteen
at the time something like that, came to me and
he was looking up to me and was like, hi, Poppy.
That was when I said, Okay, this is really happening.
This is the message right here. He's a great player, Yeah, definitely.
(32:05):
And I went home. We got back from the road
thread and I went home and I started talking to
the family. I told my agent Fernando, and I'm gonna
hang it out after this year. And then I remember
Fernando asking me, hey, but what happened. If you're older,
(32:27):
U prayer option kicks in. I'm like, I don't care.
I'm gonna get the prayer for next year, and I'm
gonna try my best. I'm gonna get people everything I got,
you know. And and that wasn't an amazing seas and
amazing this this, and I put some incredible numbers. I
(32:49):
don't even know how I did it, because be my
last year everywhere I go, people always have something going
on for me every every stadium, which is something that
I really appreciate. When I went to New York, my boy,
Marianna and the whole Yankee they did an amazing ceremony
(33:10):
for me, something that I was kind of nervous about
before he happened because I don't know what it was
gonna turn out to be, you know, because I remember
we did Jitter uh a couple of years before that.
So the Jitter ceremony, I think with Park was really good.
(33:31):
I feel really gay. Everything was very respectful. I mean,
the organization did an amazing job. But you know, sometimes
the fans get out of control. You know, you can
control that. So when I went to the europe My ceremony,
it was a little nervous. The Yankee were, uh, Betty
committed to uh the ceremony. Everything went perfect with my family.
(33:57):
I mean it was beautiful. Were you took over and
the as I read the collective bargaining agreement. Now in
the playoffs, every team gets a designated hitter. Is that right?
So you must like that? Oh man, I wish they
can be playing again. Let me let me ask you
one thing before I let you go. Tell us how
(34:19):
you started and why you started the David Ortiz Children's
Fun and what does it do in New England. I
think the people would like to know that because I
really believe that every citizen who can afford to in
terms of time and depending on how young their kids are,
I want to have something to do besides their day job.
(34:40):
And I think you made a heck of a decision here,
So tell us how you started it and why what
it does. I think everything began knowing where it comes from. Look,
if you had never been bored, sometimes you never get
to know. They're really important things in life, you know.
I I can call myself lucky that I as a child,
(35:05):
I never had to face any critical situation, Thanks God
and thanks my parents for it. But I saw a
lot of parents family struggle with with a sick child.
Let me tell you, I'm crazy about kids, kids who
may are everything. You know. I I got my own
(35:25):
kids and whenever they see children and I think they
deserve the best, you know, And that's how my foundation begins.
Just thinking about all the parents that can afford pay
for surgery, especially heart surgery. I mean, there's so many
disease out there, cancer, diabetic, I mean, you name it,
(35:46):
and I had to shoot for one of all of them.
And the reason why I went for heart surgery it
was because I remember a friend of mine. I was
in the Dominican in a friend of mine. It wasn't
it was the Sunday, never forget about that. I was
getting ready to go to the beach with my family
and he told me, can you give me five minutes.
I want to take it to a place for you
(36:08):
to check up on what is going on there. And
I was like, all right, let's do it. The place
was five minutes away from my house and in that
place is where I had my foundation running right now.
It's a hospital settiment. I went there and it was
(36:28):
a heart broken when I when I went there because
it was this one kid who at the time was
my older son age it was four at the time,
and it was this little girl who also was there.
The tour than just got I certainly done by. It
was basically like it wasn't complete because they were needing medicine.
(36:53):
The hospital he had only too bad. It wasn't much
going on. And then and when I all that, I
came out of that room crime because the first thing
I thought about, I put myself from that situation and
those parents. Let's keep parents situations happing my kids, Thank
god they were healthy. But I just wore the shoes
(37:16):
for two minutes and and and it feel horrible. So
I remember walking out of that room. I promised him
that I was gonna be back. And I came into
the country during the season and I did so many
different things, activities and stuff like that. And I remember
I raised like two underground. So I went back to
(37:40):
the hospital and donate that money. But my team and
my advisor, they told me the best way to do
it is building up a foundation. And that's exactly what
we did. We build the foundation. We started doing it.
Then we started doing things and slowly and now we
can say that more than ten tho kids have benefited
(38:05):
themselves from that foundation. And over I would say, kids, hi, God,
get their surgery done. And it's a it's a game
changer for their family because I see when most of
the kids that come into the foundation, they come from
single mom and this hard problem they can being dependent
(38:28):
their mom have to be on top of and all
the time, because you know, it's very critical. They a
lot of them die from the heart problem. And uh,
once we get their surgery done. A couple of months later,
you can see mom coming in more taking care of
herself with a new job. Because the kids start being independent,
(38:50):
you know, they start doing their own activity as a kid.
More happiness, it's it's I'm very proud. I think I'm
more proud of doing that thing then thing. All the
home druns that I hear, I think this time, my
really home run is suppressing, because well, that's life is
all about. You're gonna hit a lot more with that.
I was thrilled when I saw what you did. I
(39:11):
can't thank you enough. Well, I could keep you here
tomorrow morning. I've had a wonderful time. I think that
you know what it's all said and done. If you've
been lucky, and you've been lucky, and I've been lucky,
what you really want is for every kid to have
a chance to live whatever the best life that he
or she can live is. Yes, it is, it is.
(39:37):
I'm blessing enough to have a good kid. My kids
they are just let me, happy people, very humble. They
don't act like they have anything, but I guess is
because of the way you raise them. That is very important.
I always emphasize on that, especially when you when I'm
(39:57):
talking to the youth. You know you got I know
that your mom and dad they are your best friends
and they always gonna be there for you and the
ups and down, and you need to pay attention to
what they had to say. The longest you pay attention
to what they had to say, your future gonna be
brian because they're always gonna want the best for you.
(40:19):
David Ortie is the whole world admires you and everybody
that ever thrilled little baseball game, which is every baseball player,
love the game and treated it with the great care
you have. We thank you for this time, and I
hope at least to some more good things, and I
hope some more people will send some money to your
(40:41):
foundation so you can help more kids. Thank you very much.
Misuppressing what's the honor of being the postcast. I haven't
seen you in a minute, and Uh, I'm so glad
that I everything went google you doing this, uh Kobe time,
because you know that was that was something that care
all of us. I think I got better than guy.
(41:03):
We have been through it. We gotta continue paying attention
to it, but I'm so glad to see you doing well,
you and your family, and uh I can wait to
see you soon. Thank you. I can't wait either. Why
am I telling you? This is a production of My
Heart Radio, the Clinton Foundation and at Will Medium. Our
(41:26):
executive producers are Craig Menascian and Will Manadi. Our production
team includes Jamison Katsufas, Tom Galton, Sir Harowitz, and Jake Young,
with production support from Liz Rafferee and Josh Farnham. Original
music by Wat White. Special thanks to John Sykes, John
Davidson on hell Orina, Corey Ginstley, Kevin thurm, Oscar Flores,
(41:48):
and all our dedicated staff and partners at the Clinton Foundation. Hi,
I'm back at Courtsield and I'm a deputy Director the
Clinton Global Initiative. President Clinton established the Clinton Global Initiative
to create a new kind of philanthropic community to address
the complex realities of our modern world, where problem solving
(42:10):
required the active partnership of government, business, and civil society.
Over the years, are proven model has grown to include
action networks that can quickly mobilize in the phase of emergencies,
whether that's helping Puerto Rico and the Caribbean recover in
the wake of Hurricanes Rma and Maria. Or Advancing an
Inclusive US Economic Recovery amid COVID nineteen. To learn more
about this work and see how you can get involved,
(42:32):
visit Clinton Foundation dot org. Slash podcast
For as long as I can remember, the start of
spring has been heralded by baseball players reporting to training
camp with a new season getting underway. Bringing with it
are enduring optimism for our favorite teams and the summer
to come. Baseball has sent us through wars, depressions, and pandemics.
(00:27):
It's seen Jackie Robinson break the color barrier seventy five
years ago. This eightful and players like je Marshall and
Roberto Clemente opened doors of possibilities to new generations of
players from across Latin America. Over All these decades, baseball
has always been more than a game. It's become part
(00:48):
of who we are. So why am I telling you this?
Because after a long, dark off season and a lockout
that put the schedule in jeopardy, baseball is back and
there's no better person to help us celebrate than our
guests today, A once in a generation player who embodies
the best of baseball both on and off the field.
(01:10):
He's a ten time All Star, three time World Series champions,
seven time Silver Slugger, soon to be Baseball Hall of Famer,
and a hero to fans young and old from New
England to the Dominican Republic David Ortiz. During his fourteen
years with the Boston Red Sox, David helped lead the
team to three championships, including ending the infamous eighty six
(01:33):
year curse the so called Curse of the Bambino in
two thousand four. He also set and still holds the
team record for most home runs in a single season
with fifty four, and is widely considered one of the
greatest designated hitters in the history of the game. He's
also always been focused on giving back off the field,
(01:54):
particularly through the David Ortiz Children's Fund, which provides critical
cardiac services the children in need. David, thanks for being
here today, Mr President. How are you. I'm good. It's
nice to hear your voice. It's good seeing you. Obviously
you in a minute. Um. I think everyone who will
be listening to this podcast knows who you are and
(02:15):
knows probably that you came from the Dominican Republic, But
that doesn't explain how you fell in love with baseball
and how you've finally got a chance to play in
the major So tell us how old were you when
you started playing, How were you when you knew you
fell in love with the game, and how old were
you when you realized you had a chance to make
(02:36):
the Major's Well, first of all, I want to say
hi to all your audience. It's an honor. So we
having this podcast you Mr President and uh In my case,
I would like people to understand importance of discipline, dedication
and one of the most important things. I always take
(02:56):
a lot of pride on on the things that I do,
especially when my family list in ball. And and that's
where my story begins. You know, I was a kid
coming from uh String neighborhood back in the Dominican Republic.
But I have a couple of parents who are They
wasn't professionists, but they one thing to get to be
(03:21):
done the right way. My mom emphasized a lot of education.
My dad as well. And my dad was very good
baseball player. And but back then it came to be
a professional ball player baseball player, it was harder than
what it is nowadays. So my dad is just the
(03:44):
kind of guy that he had a lot of faith
on God and he always told me the story that
once he had a quick baseball he basically went to
church and prayed to God to have that his first
child was a boy, and and that be came to
be a baseball player. What I learned from it is
(04:06):
that dream come true. You know, God have faith and
got it, and you gotta change your dreams. And at
some point if you have dedication and discipline, he can
come through, you know. And my dad skins. I was
a kid, I remember my favor. My very first toy
was a baseball back and ball in the glove. But
(04:28):
me being a lefty back then in the Dominican it
was hard to found a left under blow. So my
dad bought me a right handed glove. I used to
wear it in the hands when I used to wear
and sometimes I used to wear in the left in
the hand castaball take the glove off and throw the baseball.
(04:51):
And when I was like eight or nine, he got
me into this one literal league team because he used
to see down when he comes back from work. He
used to see and to watch me playing baseball on
the street in front of the house. And my dad,
for some reason he thought I had something especial going on,
and since that he started emphasizing on me following up
(05:14):
with baseball because he said that when I was like
nine ten years old, the kids that were a ready
fourteen and fifteen, used to pick me on their team
to play with him. They used to fight to help
me playing in dirt team because he said that my
hands in that coordination at the age of nine ten,
(05:35):
it was very special. So my dad he just he
just fall in love where he pushed me, pushed me.
I was. I was the type of guy that at
some point I truly fall in love with basketball just
watching Michael Jordan's and all those guys doing that. That
(05:56):
in the NBA was pretty big. Back in the Dominican Republic,
I used to love being the basketball court playing basketball.
You know. I used to go to the baseball field
and then if I see a basketball cortin as, I
used to stop at the basketball court, start playing basketball
and forget about baseball. That's how crazy it was about baseball,
about about basketball at the time. But my dad keep
(06:19):
from pushing me, keep from pushing me. He used to
go sometimes to the baseball court and be like, hey, no, no, no,
that's not what you're gonna be. You're gonna be a
baseball player. Here, let's go to the baseball field. And
he had got to the point where one day, I
don't know where I remember I was on my way
(06:39):
to play basketball, and then they had a baseball game
going on and they were missing a couple of guys,
so they know that I used to practice base but
and I was into it, and the guy pulled me
into the game and then I hit two homes. When
that happened, I was like, wow, I think I can
do this. I can't do this. So I started like
(07:05):
playing more baseball, and I started following in love more
with the game. Baseball was my thing. We were in
Chicago and I was in the bar. We are Ellis
Bert after the game and the NBA was there, so
J having security coming to get uh Ellis Burt and
(07:26):
myself to come and join him, and uh that was
the time whatever minute, And I told him straight up, hey, look,
you know what, because of you, I almost not get
to be playing baseball right now. He was like what,
And then I started doing the breakdown for him and
we were laughing and and it was fun. And but
(07:48):
like I said, you know, Uh, I was lucky enough
to have parents uh focus on education and sport at
the same time without ruined the attention for anyone of
or the two things. Educational sport. They want to make
(08:09):
sure that I educated myself in that same time. Play
is for and thanks to your parents. And then we
all owe him a lot because your dad cat you
in baseball and you broke the curse of the m
Vino in two thousand four. That's exactly how he went
down and started the Yokers. The You know, this is
(08:32):
very interesting to me because I've spent a lot of
time in the Dominican Republic over the last twenty years,
and one of my closest friends and college classmates and
still lives there. We do a lot of work together
and and we've talked a lot about how how rich
the baseball heritage is there. Even the great Satchel Page
(08:52):
played in the Dominican Republic back in this nineteen sixties
and fifties. He'd go down there. So there is a
long history there, and there's a most Americans don't know it,
but there's a kind of a Latin American World Series
every year with Mexico, the American Republic, Venezuela, Puerto Rico,
(09:13):
Cuba and uh. It was several years ago. It was
in Jalisco, and I was invited to go down and
be there when we threw out the first pitch with
the great boxer Canelo, and thank goodness, he threw the
ball and I didn't have to, so his arm was
slightly better than mine. Oh my good did you think
(09:36):
a lot when you played that you were basically walking
in the staffs of one Marshall Sammy Sells, the great
Dominican players before. Were you aware that you were carrying
this heritage forward? Reality is suppression that I, uh, I
was the kid that all I have a mind when
(09:59):
that's first joke into the pro was founding the way
to help my family. We were poor family coming from
the dominic, and my mom and dad I used to
work extremely hard to pay for the school, to pay
for food. We didn't have any extra things because we
(10:19):
can't afford it. And my childhood was really good because
he was full of love in respect, but nothing else.
We don't have any financial statement. It was the type
of living that it was in the day by day
(10:40):
type of things and it was basically, you know, surviving
type of thing. And but my my mom and dad
they hold on tight, they protect uh their kids. They
always try their best to take care of us the
(11:00):
way they can. At the time when I was like sixteen,
seventeen with all the pressure that I was living into it.
I know exactly what I need to be and what
I want to be. I just don't know what it
was gonna take me to get there, but I know
my mind has very clear the things that I need
(11:24):
to do. Two, put my family in a situation because
I was the only way out. I was their only
way out. It was the only way out but me.
So I know that I had that responsibility, and I started,
you know, working on trying to learn what it takes
(11:46):
to be one of those guys that you just mentioned. Well,
I'm very moved by what you said about your mother,
and I know you lost her about twenty years ago.
I think this year in the car accident. Yes, and
you were paying tribute. You're at you every home running. Yes.
I remember when I lost my mom. I was playing
for the Twins and it was after New Year Dead.
(12:08):
My mom used to go to busy her family, you know,
New Year, you know, and that one time it was
like basically saying goodbye, because on the way back home
they asked it happened, and I was pretty close to
my mom. I was, I was, you know, my mom was.
I always give some hard time to my sister saying
(12:29):
that I was my mom favorite child. She just spoiled
man enough, you know what I'm saying, My moments to
love cooking and just sit down and watch me eat.
She used to call me her big boy, you know.
And we had that type of connection. And once that happened,
that that heat home hard, you know, because my career, uh,
(12:54):
he would just beginning, and it was something that no
one is prepared for that, you know. And and I
remember I went to spring training in March. I remember
(13:15):
I used to celebrate my mother's birthday because her birthday
was marched four wards. We were in the middle spring
training and that day that it was her birthday. Uh.
I remember getting to the field, I got to the
parking lot and I was just bawling, crying, and I
(13:37):
just sitting down by myself in the parking lot, and uh,
the whole team came out and picked me up. And
I remember my boy, Buddy Hunter, he was he was
my teammate at the time. He was the first one
who coming and grabbed me. And you know, everybody was
super cool. And I was in the line of that
(14:01):
day and I remember I hit two homers on that game,
and the first thing that came to my mind after
I hit the first summer was doing that that celebration
when I got to the plate. And since that day,
it was like the best feeling I have had after
I hit the home run. I bet you still miss
your mother? Oh yeah, every day? My mother dad twenty
(14:26):
nine years ago, last January six, and uh, I still
think about her, you know all the time. That's a
different love, Mr President, That's a different love. You know,
you got your wife, you got your kids, you got
your family member, you got everybody, you got friends. But
the love coming from mom is is different. That's why
(14:48):
I always tell my kids, you love for your mom
is the love for your mom, you know, it's it's
it's something that is extremely different. That connection is different.
I'm a guy that I'm buy so many lovely people,
so many people, like my family is based on that
sprained love everywhere, but that one type of love is different.
(15:12):
So you became famous in Boston for many things, but
no one will ever forget the speech you gave in
Fenway Park after the Boston Marathon bombing, and uh, you
captured the feelings of everybody in Boston, but also one
(15:34):
of the hearts of everybody in America from how did
that happen? How did you come to be speaking and
saying that? Do you did you? Did you know what
you were gonna say when you started talking? No idea,
no idea. But the one thing that I always tell
everyone is that first of all, this country it means
(15:58):
everything to me. You know, um, this is going to
give me the opportunity to me and my family to
have a future. And I always keep from telling people,
you know, like it's going through to me, it's just
like the Dominican Republic. Uh, It's a country that means
(16:18):
everything to me. The thing was traveling. I was a
Boston rehabit and when I saw all that things happening,
I thought I was watching a movie because I couldn't believe.
Like the marathon, like who is not related to the marathon?
Like the marathon is what we raise money to fight disease,
(16:41):
you know, it's what we where everybody get together for
the cause. That means a lot to everyone. And when
I saw that going down and I was, I was,
I got stuck. I don't I don't even know what
to think. And I started getting frustrated because I always
(17:02):
the rest Socks do a great job we with all
of us as a player, making sure that we are
involved in the community service. You know what I'm saying.
We go to hospital, we go to school, we go
to jobs, we we we we like the rest Socks.
I'm very proud about what I learned playing for the
(17:25):
rest Socks when they come down to community service, because
they made sure that we get involved with the community.
So one that was going on, I remember seeing a
black hawk flying by my house, and you know that
you don't see a black hawk every day. Who know
(17:47):
that when you see a black hawk there's something going down,
And it was when all the chasing was going off.
Three days later, the team comes back in town. But
three days you know, just seeing all the people that
lost family members, that love body parts, all these beautiful
(18:11):
people that was trying to help, that was trying to
do things, it was very devastating. I mean I I was.
I was very very upset. And the one thing that
he homed for me especially it was just one kid
(18:31):
that got killed, you know, that was something that it
was very devastating to me. So when the thing came
back in town, we are again and that was going
to be my first gig of the season, and we
had the ceremony going on going on my family. I
(18:53):
had no clue that they were gonna pick me to
go out there and say something to the fans. I
had no idea that happened, Like I want the ceremony
start going five minutes before. They were like, hey, we
want you to go out there, and I was in
the dog. We want you to go out there and
say something to the fans. And all I say out
(19:14):
there was me being a citizen. I never thought about
me being Dave Rutize, me being the face of the franchise,
me being who I was. All I thought about was
all the stuff that we went through through all those
days as an American citizen, and and that was what
(19:38):
I left over an amount when I took over the microphone.
And all I want to make sure when I say
what I say is that I want people to know
that even going through all that this is the greatest
country to live. Because I know where I come from,
and I know the lack of opportunity that you can
have in the third world country. What is something that
(20:01):
here in this country, if you come in and work hard,
they give the opportunity to have that American dream that
we all talk about, and that was it. That was me.
You did a great thing for America that day. More
after this, when was your first season in the major
(20:28):
leagues and how old were you it was? I got
cold up my first game, very first game, was a
really feel something that I think it was the best
experience of all time because you're talking about one of
day uh legendary fields. Growing up as a kid, my
(20:48):
favorite player was Carby Pocket, and carry Pocket at the
time was working in the front office for the Minnesota Twins.
But when I got cold up, he was there. Uh
he was in the clothhouse, and I think it was
the greatest thing and the reason why he he came
to be my favorite player, it was because when I
was a kid, I had no patience to sit down
(21:11):
to watch the baseball game, and my dad's in the
playoffs between the Braids and the Minnesota Twins. He basically
forced me to see on to watch the game, and
I sit down, and that was when Kirby made that
that incredible cash in center field that we all remember,
and he went out there to hit and then he
(21:34):
hit a bomb. So as a kid that I stayed
with me forever. So when I got traded from Seattle
to Minnesota, the one guy that I wanted me, I
mean badly, was Kirby. And Kirby was so good to me.
He was like a father to me, Like he was
(21:56):
the most fun guy to be year around, you know.
And and Kirby take care of all of us, all
of us, you know, And he was working in the
front office in the spring training. Used to come down
and make sure that, you know, our mindset, of our
preparation and everything was good to go. But at same time,
(22:17):
he was a cloud, which I think made baseball, you know,
even more fun when you have a guy like him,
you know, being him. It was something that that really
really helped us out. And unfortunately we're into losing Kirby
down the road. And when I got to Boston the
(22:40):
number that used to wear I Minnesota, he was already
one of his number that he was hanging up there. Uh,
they asked me one number, I want to wear it?
And then I went from Kurby. Oh well yeah, that's
how he went down. But yeah, my first game was
to really feel I remember amy so as I playing
(23:01):
right field, Mark Grays played first Gray. I used to
be a first base on another time. So Mark Grays
was one of my hey were played to watch. So
Sammy told Mark Grays about it, and I remember Mark
Gray sending me one of his glove autographs to me.
That was everything. I lost it when I didn't see
that glow it was it was, it was beautiful, It
(23:24):
was beautiful, and that was what I got. My first hit,
My first thing in the Big League was a double.
That's great. I remember in nine when I was still president,
I went to Atlanta to celebrate the twenty five anniversary
of Henk Karen breaking Babe Bruce home run record and
(23:44):
a lot of the great All Stars were there, but
the only player that was playing still in doing well
who came with Sammy Celsis And I said, I can't
believe you're here. I really appreciate you making the effort
to come, And he said, uh no, no, no, I
had to be here. What you should want to know
(24:04):
is where the others are. Did they think we'd be
making all this big money if it hadn't been for
Hank Aaron getting baseball and doing what he did, you know,
and I love the way baseball bills on each other,
you know, traditions sometimes now a hundred years old. It's
it's beautiful. And Hank Aaron and I became very close
(24:26):
friends that He said something that night that I'll never forget,
just because it's what I see often in the greatest athletes,
a certain humility, you know. And I said, I said, Hank,
who's the best player you ever played with her against?
And he said, oh, that's not close. He said William Mazes.
He said, he, uh, he had the best arm from
(24:49):
outfield since for Berto Clemente. He could run like a
deer and he could hit like a demon, and he
would have broken Babe Ruth record too, if the Giants
hadn't moved to Candle State Park where the wind blew
oh yeah, from Blackfield right in the home flight. He said,
there were nights even God couldn't at home running Candlestick.
(25:14):
But I thought, you know, here's this guy celebrating his
epic record talking about other people. And I see that
all the time in baseball, a sense of the history,
of the sense of the appreciation for other people. And
I've always respected out about you the way you treat
the game with respect, to treat the players with respect,
you know, you know, what now that you say that
(25:37):
A few things before I forgot when you were talking
about Mr hang Aaron's I have a wonderful spirit with him.
Before I got to hang out even more with him.
I remember we one day without them for War Series
and I went with the family to the Bahamas and
I'm sitting down having dinner with my family and the
table and this yet man stand all right next to
(26:02):
me and told me. I'm not looking at him and listening.
I'm listening to what he's saying. And he said, hey,
and with my grandson, can you sign this baseball for me?
And I was like, of course. And then I got
the baseball and when I was about to sign it,
I look up and when I saw him, I was like,
(26:23):
wait a minute, why don't you sign one for me?
It was the coolest thing that I ever happened to me.
When I saw me saying asking me for an autograph,
I was like, not another, you sign one for me?
How about that? And now we alway used to make
fun at it about it after that, and when it
(26:44):
comes down to prospect the game, the one thing that
I always Mr President and thought about while I play
it was that this game is like when you are
an Olympic running that you have to pass the torch
to someone else. Uh the game, I would say, unfortunately.
(27:11):
It's like that. Why I say unfortunately, because when you
fall in love with this game, you never want to
be out of it, and at some point you have
to because you don't get any younger. You know what
I'm saying. By the one thing that I always enjoyed
was being able to pass the torch do it on
the prowd way. Because I have so many young talented
(27:33):
players now that I don't play, coming to me and
be like, hey man, you know I appreciate it where
you did things and the way you handle the business
with we all of us, you know, coming up guys
that played with me, Guys that even more part of
the opposition that I had to sit down and get
their advice because I believe in the talent. I love
(27:55):
to see the guys that had the great talent and
being able to get them advice, let them know how
things though, because all I want all I work about
when I play, and even now that I don't place,
make sure that the game get better and better and better.
And the only way that happened is with educational perspect
it's stay there forever. We'll be right back. Do you
(28:28):
announce your retirement in before the season and then you
went out and at the most home runs by a
player in his final year? Ever, how did you know
it was time to hang it up? And did you
ever have any second thoughts? Um? Reality is that the
season before that one, you know, my last first gear,
(28:51):
playing my last four years, I will go in through
a lot of pain and my achilles. I first injured
my right one and then all of a sudden, my
my left when the start, you know, start hurting, and
the rest of the did a great job. They had
(29:13):
a whole team working on me. I remember, uh for
the seven p m. Gang, I used to come around
to to theddy, but once this olders treatment start taking places,
I had to come to the field by noon. So
I would left living, you know, the family, earlier than
usual to make sure I get ready and prepared to
(29:35):
play the game. So to me, I always wear the
uniform with a lot of pride and and I know
that the fans always expect me too to come through. Uh.
While I wore the uniform like that, that was the
responsibility that I kind of build up through the time,
(29:55):
and and and I had that connection with the fans,
and and I want to make sure don't miss a
beat while I played so two that going through all
that two that in fifteen, I I remember, and that
was when I find out that I gotta go through story, right.
(30:16):
I remember we were playing I think it was a
Seattle and then we went to Houston something like that.
I can't really remember, but I remember I hit a double.
And when I was a second base, they have a
new picture coming in. And while I was sitting there,
(30:37):
you know how the players come around you to talk
to you, you know, interact with you. Uh, while the
picture is getting ready, the infielder came around and everybody
was like twenty years old. And I were like, wait
a minute, all this guy can be my kids? Is
(31:00):
not fun? Uh? And then I'm hurting. I mean, what's
going on here? I went home that night and I
was thinking about a big time and plus I had
a hossle to get that double. And when I stopped
a second base, I want to make sure that the
next guy hit him. It makes you hit another double
(31:20):
or hit at home run, because I don't think I
was feeling like scoring with the basic. That's how much
I was hurting. So all this stuff started stacking up.
And then I went to play to Houston and exactly
the same thing happened. I hit a double, they got
(31:41):
a new picture coming in. And then I remember our
two ways, who is short but he was like nineteen
at the time something like that, came to me and
he was looking up to me and was like, hi, Poppy.
That was when I said, Okay, this is really happening.
This is the message right here. He's a great player, Yeah, definitely.
(32:05):
And I went home. We got back from the road
thread and I went home and I started talking to
the family. I told my agent Fernando, and I'm gonna
hang it out after this year. And then I remember
Fernando asking me, hey, but what happened. If you're older,
(32:27):
U prayer option kicks in. I'm like, I don't care.
I'm gonna get the prayer for next year, and I'm
gonna try my best. I'm gonna get people everything I got,
you know. And and that wasn't an amazing seas and
amazing this this, and I put some incredible numbers. I
(32:49):
don't even know how I did it, because be my
last year everywhere I go, people always have something going
on for me every every stadium, which is something that
I really appreciate. When I went to New York, my boy,
Marianna and the whole Yankee they did an amazing ceremony
(33:10):
for me, something that I was kind of nervous about
before he happened because I don't know what it was
gonna turn out to be, you know, because I remember
we did Jitter uh a couple of years before that.
So the Jitter ceremony, I think with Park was really good.
(33:31):
I feel really gay. Everything was very respectful. I mean,
the organization did an amazing job. But you know, sometimes
the fans get out of control. You know, you can
control that. So when I went to the europe My ceremony,
it was a little nervous. The Yankee were, uh, Betty
committed to uh the ceremony. Everything went perfect with my family.
(33:57):
I mean it was beautiful. Were you took over and
the as I read the collective bargaining agreement. Now in
the playoffs, every team gets a designated hitter. Is that right?
So you must like that? Oh man, I wish they
can be playing again. Let me let me ask you
one thing before I let you go. Tell us how
(34:19):
you started and why you started the David Ortiz Children's
Fun and what does it do in New England. I
think the people would like to know that because I
really believe that every citizen who can afford to in
terms of time and depending on how young their kids are,
I want to have something to do besides their day job.
(34:40):
And I think you made a heck of a decision here,
So tell us how you started it and why what
it does. I think everything began knowing where it comes from. Look,
if you had never been bored, sometimes you never get
to know. They're really important things in life, you know.
I I can call myself lucky that I as a child,
(35:05):
I never had to face any critical situation, Thanks God
and thanks my parents for it. But I saw a
lot of parents family struggle with with a sick child.
Let me tell you, I'm crazy about kids, kids who
may are everything. You know. I I got my own
(35:25):
kids and whenever they see children and I think they
deserve the best, you know, And that's how my foundation begins.
Just thinking about all the parents that can afford pay
for surgery, especially heart surgery. I mean, there's so many
disease out there, cancer, diabetic, I mean, you name it,
(35:46):
and I had to shoot for one of all of them.
And the reason why I went for heart surgery it
was because I remember a friend of mine. I was
in the Dominican in a friend of mine. It wasn't
it was the Sunday, never forget about that. I was
getting ready to go to the beach with my family
and he told me, can you give me five minutes.
I want to take it to a place for you
(36:08):
to check up on what is going on there. And
I was like, all right, let's do it. The place
was five minutes away from my house and in that
place is where I had my foundation running right now.
It's a hospital settiment. I went there and it was
(36:28):
a heart broken when I when I went there because
it was this one kid who at the time was
my older son age it was four at the time,
and it was this little girl who also was there.
The tour than just got I certainly done by. It
was basically like it wasn't complete because they were needing medicine.
(36:53):
The hospital he had only too bad. It wasn't much
going on. And then and when I all that, I
came out of that room crime because the first thing
I thought about, I put myself from that situation and
those parents. Let's keep parents situations happing my kids, Thank
god they were healthy. But I just wore the shoes
(37:16):
for two minutes and and and it feel horrible. So
I remember walking out of that room. I promised him
that I was gonna be back. And I came into
the country during the season and I did so many
different things, activities and stuff like that. And I remember
I raised like two underground. So I went back to
(37:40):
the hospital and donate that money. But my team and
my advisor, they told me the best way to do
it is building up a foundation. And that's exactly what
we did. We build the foundation. We started doing it.
Then we started doing things and slowly and now we
can say that more than ten tho kids have benefited
(38:05):
themselves from that foundation. And over I would say, kids, hi, God,
get their surgery done. And it's a it's a game
changer for their family because I see when most of
the kids that come into the foundation, they come from
single mom and this hard problem they can being dependent
(38:28):
their mom have to be on top of and all
the time, because you know, it's very critical. They a
lot of them die from the heart problem. And uh,
once we get their surgery done. A couple of months later,
you can see mom coming in more taking care of
herself with a new job. Because the kids start being independent,
(38:50):
you know, they start doing their own activity as a kid.
More happiness, it's it's I'm very proud. I think I'm
more proud of doing that thing then thing. All the
home druns that I hear, I think this time, my
really home run is suppressing, because well, that's life is
all about. You're gonna hit a lot more with that.
I was thrilled when I saw what you did. I
(39:11):
can't thank you enough. Well, I could keep you here
tomorrow morning. I've had a wonderful time. I think that
you know what it's all said and done. If you've
been lucky, and you've been lucky, and I've been lucky,
what you really want is for every kid to have
a chance to live whatever the best life that he
or she can live is. Yes, it is, it is.
(39:37):
I'm blessing enough to have a good kid. My kids
they are just let me, happy people, very humble. They
don't act like they have anything, but I guess is
because of the way you raise them. That is very important.
I always emphasize on that, especially when you when I'm
(39:57):
talking to the youth. You know you got I know
that your mom and dad they are your best friends
and they always gonna be there for you and the
ups and down, and you need to pay attention to
what they had to say. The longest you pay attention
to what they had to say, your future gonna be
brian because they're always gonna want the best for you.
(40:19):
David Ortie is the whole world admires you and everybody
that ever thrilled little baseball game, which is every baseball player,
love the game and treated it with the great care
you have. We thank you for this time, and I
hope at least to some more good things, and I
hope some more people will send some money to your
(40:41):
foundation so you can help more kids. Thank you very much.
Misuppressing what's the honor of being the postcast. I haven't
seen you in a minute, and Uh, I'm so glad
that I everything went google you doing this, uh Kobe time,
because you know that was that was something that care
all of us. I think I got better than guy.
(41:03):
We have been through it. We gotta continue paying attention
to it, but I'm so glad to see you doing well,
you and your family, and uh I can wait to
see you soon. Thank you. I can't wait either. Why
am I telling you? This is a production of My
Heart Radio, the Clinton Foundation and at Will Medium. Our
(41:26):
executive producers are Craig Menascian and Will Manadi. Our production
team includes Jamison Katsufas, Tom Galton, Sir Harowitz, and Jake Young,
with production support from Liz Rafferee and Josh Farnham. Original
music by Wat White. Special thanks to John Sykes, John
Davidson on hell Orina, Corey Ginstley, Kevin thurm, Oscar Flores,
(41:48):
and all our dedicated staff and partners at the Clinton Foundation. Hi,
I'm back at Courtsield and I'm a deputy Director the
Clinton Global Initiative. President Clinton established the Clinton Global Initiative
to create a new kind of philanthropic community to address
the complex realities of our modern world, where problem solving
(42:10):
required the active partnership of government, business, and civil society.
Over the years, are proven model has grown to include
action networks that can quickly mobilize in the phase of emergencies,
whether that's helping Puerto Rico and the Caribbean recover in
the wake of Hurricanes Rma and Maria. Or Advancing an
Inclusive US Economic Recovery amid COVID nineteen. To learn more
about this work and see how you can get involved,
(42:32):
visit Clinton Foundation dot org. Slash podcast
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